The Great Adventure
Pastor Jeremy Helmuth
FEAR God, NOT man (Gen 19-20)
June 2-4, 2023
AVOIDING the TRAP
The moment you become a parent, you want to place your child into a wonderful community of loving and trustworthy people who will help raise your child in the ways of Jesus Christ. But we all know that as the child grows, he or she will be tempted by evil, no matter how much you want to protect their innocence. In this story, we see flawed parents and children making horrible decisions that have negative consequences for future generations. Learn the lessons from these accounts so that you do not repeat history.
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Discussion Questions
Does your ENVIRONMENT negatively affect you?
“Bad company corrupts good character” (1 Cor 15:33). Does your attitude or actions change based upon who you hang out or work with? Have you ever needed to change locations in your life to remove the harmful influences around you? Have you ever given in to peer pressure because you feared someone’s response?
Are you a people PLEASER or God PLEASER?
Meditate upon Galatians 1:10 and Proverbs 29:25. Be honest: are you more concerned about pleasing people or God? How can you make sure that you fear God more than people? What kind of trap do you fall into when you fear people more than God? Discuss Paul’s advice to Timothy about how to overcome timidity (2 Timothy 1:6-9).
How can you find VICTORY when EVIL seems to prevail?
Read about the evil environments the early church endured: Put in prison by Devil (Rev 2:10); lived by Devil’s throne (Rev 2:13); Jezebel misled them (Rev 2:20); Satan’s synagogue was near them (Rev 3:9); lived in lukewarmness (Rev 3:16). How were they able to overcome the wickedness in their midst?
What makes PRAYER a powerful weapon?
What are the characteristics of a righteous person (James 5:16)? Even though Abraham sinned by lying, his prayer was still powerful (God answered it). Would you describe Abraham as a righteous man even though he hurt others by lying? What does that teach us about our own righteousness and how important it is for us to cry out to God for help? What does humility have to do with righteousness?
How can you flee from TEMPTATION?
Like Lot, do you hesitate when running from sin (19:16)? Do you ask God to allow you to stay close to it (19:20)? What can you do this week to trust God that He has provided an escape for you?